During the 2018-19 school year, we are piloting a program that combines STEM education with a collection of beneficial life skills. Our goal is to promote a Sense of Agency in youth participants.
Sense of Agency - "Agency" refers to a belief that through one's actions one can control their destiny and positively affect the world around them.
The Brain Hackers program combines five elements:
(1) Metacognitive Skills Training - this training provides an awareness of brain function and factors that promote or hinder performance, and techniques for maximizing effectiveness that are broadly applicable to cognitive and physical performance.
(2) Tai Chi - due to its combination of meditation and physical performance, as well as demands for intense focus and concentration, Tai Chi challenges the individual in a manner that has been linked to cognitive and health benefits. Youth participants learn and practice the classical 24-posture form.
(3) Community-Based Project - over the course of the school year, youth identify a problem and create a technology product that makes life better for people living in their community, while learning product design and project management skills.
(4) Professional CGI/Game Development - youth learn the basics of using Unreal Engine - a professional CGI/Game Development software package - allowing them to use the same tools as adults working in the entertainment/gaming industries.
(5) Loaner Computers - subject to availability, youth participants are offered the opportunity to take home a loaner computer that they can use throughout the school year giving them the experience of having their own computer.
For more information concerning the program, contact info@brainhackers.net.
